Homecoming
by bookwyrm321
Summary: It's been seven months since the final battle, and the Mysticons have gone their separate ways. What will happen when they reunite? AU.
1. Homecoming Part 1

Homecoming, Part 1

Princess Arkayna Goodfey held a fork in one hand and her phone in the other, In between bites of her breakfast, she looked over her itinerary for the day, which she had loaded onto her phone months earlier in an attempt to be prepared for anything at any time.

 _8:00, Breakfast._ Well, obviously. She was doing that right now.

 _9:15, Politics and Diplomacy._ She groaned. The most boring of all her lessons. Her tutor was pretty good, but even he couldn't make it any more fun. She hoped Gawayne wouldn't fall asleep in the middle of the lesson again.

 _10:30, History of Gemina._ Tolerable, but history had become a lot less interesting since she'd faced some of those historical baddies herself.

 _12:00, Lunch._ Good, a break.

 _Maybe my afternoon lessons wouldn't be as bad as the morning ones._

 _12:45, Court Day._

She groaned again. _Or not._

Court Day had been the king and queen's solution to getting back in touch with their kingdom. After being turned to bone for several months, they were completely oblivious to a lot of the important things that had occurred in that time. On Court Day, which was held on the first day of every month, any citizen who wanted could request an audience with the royal family. Usually, that meant people giving extravagant compliments to all of them and not actually _doing_ anything. Arkayna was expected to sit there and listen, but not contribute unless she was specifically asked.

Really, the day would be _so_ muchbetter if her sisters could be here to share in the misery with her. Or even just in the palace, waiting for her day to be over so they could hang out. It wasn't possible, of course. After handing in her resignation as royal griffin wrangler, Em had taken an apprenticeship with a master smith, learning how to forge magic items. Originally, she had planned to live at the palace and walk to the shop and back every day, but only a few days in realized that wasn't feasible. Master Cloudwind gave his employees plenty of freedom on their personal projects, but his shop was open long hours every day, and he stayed after closing to give his two apprentices lessons without being interrupted by customers. Em had taken to crashing in the spare room over the shop, and Arkayna hadn't seen her in more than two weeks. Piper had gone back to her old street gang, saying that the kids needed someone who was used to the streets to look after them for a while until Neeko could take over. She popped into the palace every now and then for food or supplies, but it had been several days since Arkayna had last seen her. Still, at least both of them were still in Drake City. Zarya was stars-knew-where with the Pink Skulls, enjoying her freedom. None of them had seen her in the seven months since the final battle. The queen hadn't been too happy about her lost daughter leaving with a group of pirates before getting to spend any time together, but living the life of a princess would have suffocated Zarya, and Arkayna knew it.

Arkayna was shaken out of her thoughts by the door crashing open and a golden blur cartwheeling into the room. It stopped in front of her and was revealed to be a pigtailed elf.

"Piper, you're here! I was just thinking about you."

Piper Willowbrook giggled. "Awww, that's so sweet! I was just thinking that I could reeeaaally use some downtime. Mind if I crash here for a few days?"

Arkayna raised her eyebrows. "Since when do you 'need some downtime'? You're not telling me something."

Piper flopped onto the chair as she replied, "Okay, fine, you got me. The gang just pulled a huuuuge scam, and now we need to lay low for a while 'til the heat dies down. Probably just a day or two."

"Fine, but I can't spend it with you. I have"—she checked her phone—"seven minutes to get to my first lesson. You can go hang out in the game room until I finish, though." Arkayna started to leave, then turned and asked, "Have you heard anything from Zarya recently?"

Piper's eternal optimism dimmed a little. "Noooo… you know as much as I do."

Arkayna's shoulders slumped. "I didn't think so... well, thanks anyway."

Piper shrugged as she bopped out of the room, presumably to take up Arkayna's offer to use the game room until the end of the day.

Arkayna checked her phone again. Great, now she only had four minutes to get to Politics and Diplomacy, and her tutor did not tolerate tardiness. Sighing, she headed toward the classroom. It might not be the most exciting of days, but she'd made a promise to her mother and to herself that she would take her lessons seriously from now on. And Piper was here, that had to count for something… right?

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

A few hours outside Drake City, a skyship was anchored alongside an island cliff. It was clearly a pirate ship, but the plain white flag on the second mast indicated that the pirates onboard didn't want any trouble. All the crew members were currently hovering around a table full of food, stuffing their faces. All, that is, except for one girl standing on the other side of the deck. She stood out from the rest of the crew, not only because of her distance, but also because unlike the rest of them in pink and black, she was dressed entirely in shades of blue, down to her deep indigo hair. A white foz sat on her shoulder and chittered at her as she stared out at the horizon.

"Not now, Choko," Zarya Moonwolf absently muttered to her furry companion.

"You're not gonna eat?"

Zarya turned to look at her best friend. "Not hungry."

Kitty Boon, captain of the Pink Skulls, just scoffed at her. "Right, 'cause you're not the girl who's been known to eat half her weight in Sky Pies in one sitting. Why don't you tell it to someone who hasn't known you your whole life? Or better yet, just tell me what you're worried about. It can't be seeing your sisters again, you've been excited about that for days."

Kitty had always been able to read her like a book. "Not about that. Nervous and excited, yeah. But I'm _worried_ we're gonna get shot out of the sky. We are a pirate ship headed straight for the royal palace, after all."

"Wasn't that the whole point of the flag of truce?"

"Yeah, but I'm not sure how much good it'll really do. Once Arkayna hears about a pirate ship approaching the palace, she'll probably guess it's us and order the royal guard to stand down. At least, that's the hope." Zarya turned back to the horizon.

"Sure it is. Also, you're changing the subject. How about this: I'm not giving the order to raise anchor until you eat something. We'll sit here all day if we have to."

Zarya turned around again. Kitty had her arms crossed and was giving her a don't-argue-with-me-on-this look.

"Oh, _fine_. I'll eat something if it means that much to you."

The crown over at the food table had mostly dispersed. Zarya grabbed an apple, a biscuit, and some coffee, then looked over at Kitty. "Happy now?"

"Yep. I'll be even happier when you actually _eat_ all of it. Then we can raise anchor and be on our way."

Zarya didn't respond to that; she had shoved half the biscuit into her mouth while Kitty was speaking. It only took a few minutes for her to finish the apple and toss back the rest of the coffee. Uck, stale. She was looking forward to being able to eat some snorg balls almost as much as she was looking forward to seeing her sisters.

"All right, Pink Skulls, let's fly some sky! Raise anchor and full speed ahead to Drake City!" Kitty yelled out.

Zarya looked out over the rail again. _I'm coming home, girls._

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Arkayna's morning hadn't gone well. Gawayne hadn't fallen asleep, but it had been a close call. She'd been starting to nod off herself during their tutor's lecture on greeting ambassadors. Who knew pixies were so particular about how people bowed to them? The lesson was over now, though, and she could enjoy her well-deserved lunch break in peace.

It had become her habit to ask the royal chef for "whatever's easiest" instead of ordering something that would require a lot of time or effort. This saved him from having to make elaborate creations for _two_ members of the household (Gawayne still hadn't gotten the hint about trying to make the servants' lives easier) and also saved her from having to wait while it was being made. Today, though, she wished she'd been a little more specific. The limp vegetables on her plate had apparently been intended for her mother, but the queen had decided to skip lunch after the plate had already been put together. Arkayna pushed the vegetables around her plate, occasionally taking a bite. "I miss street food…"

"I bet that's the first time a princess of Gemina's ever said _that_."

Arkayna looked up to see a stocky blonde leaning on the door frame. "Oh, yeah? I bet Zarya's been saying it for months."

Emerald Goldenbraid pondered that statement for a moment, then answered, "True enough. I just have a really hard time thinking of her as a princess."

"Also true." Arkayna did sometimes envy her twin sister her anonymity; she couldn't even buy herself some snorg balls without being recognized as the princess. "Did I know you were coming by today?"

"Nah, I finished up this project I've been working on for a while and Master Cloudwind told me to take the afternoon to myself." Em turned around to see a guard carrying a large box. "Do you know where my rooms are? You can set it down there and I'll deal with it later."

"Well, I'm sorry you came all this way, but I've got Court Day all afternoon. Oh, but last I knew, Piper was in the game room; you could keep her company!"

Em winced in sympathy; she'd heard all about Court Day in plenty of detail before.

"Maybe it won't be so bad this time." Although Arkayna didn't believe her own words.

"Yeah, maybe… Anyway, I think I will go hang with Piper. See ya." Em headed off down the hallway. Arkayna watched her go, then decided that the only thing worse than Court Day would be Court Day on an empty stomach, so she went back to her food. She'd managed to choke down most of it (it had gotten colder while she'd been talking to Em) before the steward summoned her to the throne room.

 _It won't be that bad._ Maybe if she kept repeating it, it would actually happen. After all, Em _and_ Piper were here now! This day was already better than it had been this morning due to that simple fact. _It won't be that bad…_

She revised her opinion on _that_ as soon as the first petitioner was shown in. It was the merchant that Zarya and Piper had dubbed "Fat Cat" because… well, he was a fat cat. She knew he was one of the undercity's biggest crime lords, but nobody had ever been able to pin anything on him. His expensive suit was probably meant to convince people to trust him, but Arkayna had never gotten past the mismatched eyes. She wondered why he was here; most criminals tended to stay far away from the royal family, for obvious reasons.

Fat Cat had started speaking in a gravelly tone. "Good day, Your Majesties. I trust it has been a pleasant morning?"

The queen wasn't having any of it. "Sir, if you've come here only to make small talk, the guards will show you out now. There are many others who wish to speak with us today, and I will not keep them waiting while you waste our time."

"Yes, yes… Ahem." Fat Cat paused. "In that case, I feel you should know that one of my shipments was stolen overnight. I would like to request the use of some royal guards to ensure that the shipment I have coming in tomorrow does not fall prey to thieves as well."

Arkayna resisted the urge to face-palm. Fat Cat had been one of Zarya and Piper's favorite targets; apparently that hadn't changed when the gang leadership had. _So this is the "huuuuge scam" Piper was talking about. Please don't do anything to get yourself arrested, Pipes._

Fat Cat had left while she'd been lost in thought. She hadn't heard whether or not her parents had decided to grant him the guards. She supposed it didn't really matter; if the gang had just pulled one scam overnight, they probably wouldn't target the shipment tomorrow. Part of that whole "laying low" thing Piper had been talking about.

The next petitioner was a dwarven woman who wanted to know if her book club could use the royal courtyard for a charity event. The king and queen granted that request on the spot.

Between the third and fourth petitioners, Arkayna started to tune out. She wasn't sure if they'd seen seven people or eight when a guard burst into the room, looking harried.

"Your Majesties, Your Highness, please forgive the interruption, but there has been a pirate ship sighted in the sky on a direct course for the palace. We must evacuate you immediately."

Arkayna's breath caught in her throat. She had to make sure she'd heard right. "Did you say… a pirate ship?"

The guard's expression turned into a patronizing smile as he looked at her. "Don't worry, Your Highness. We'll protect you from the pirates."

"I don't need protecting. Believe me, I've faced worse than a bunch of pirates." It irked her to no end that the royal guard coddled her like this. She was the Dragon Mage, for Gygax's sake! It wasn't like she was defenseless. "Tell me… what does their flag look like?"

He stared at her. "Their… flag?"

"Yes, their flag! You know, the piece of cloth attached to the mast that flutters in the breeze? Is it the profile of a pink skull on a black field?"

"Y-Yes, Your Highness." He was still staring. She ignored it.

"In that case, I order all guards to stand down. Anyone who attacks that ship will be fired immediately." She started walking toward the balcony. "The Pink Skulls and I have an agreement. Please go find Piper Willowbrook and Emerald Goldenbraid and have them join me on the balcony right now."

"Arkayna!" her mother called. "What makes you so sure these pirates won't attack you on sight?"

Arkayna kept walking. "Because there's only one sky pirate in Gemina fearless enough to approach the royal palace like this… And I'm so glad she's home."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Piper and Em were engaged in an epic battle against a troll. Piper was out front, distracting him with the giant axe she was using as a weapon, while Em tried to sneak around and hit him in the back with her sword. It wasn't working; the troll had caught on to them and was keeping his back to the wall. He swung his mace at Piper. She would have been smashed if Em hadn't gotten in front of her with her shield out. The mace clanged off of it, but Em was definitely feeling the hit. Seeing her hesitation, the troll swung again and Em went flying into the wall…

…and "Game Over" flashed across the screen in large red letters.

Piper tossed away her controller in disgust. "Seriously? That's the fourth time we've gotten our butts handed to us by Troll Dude, and we've used a different strategy every time! What gives?"

Em shrugged.

"Maybe it's time we started looking up cheat codes on the etherealnet. Then we can give this guy a nice trip to Defeatsville!"

"I don't really wanna win that way, Pipes," Em replied.

Piper pouted. "Zarya could beat him with her eyes closed!"

"Probably," Em agreed.

They lapsed into silence. It only lasted for a few seconds before Piper went to retrieve her thrown controller. "Wanna try it one more time?"

They had only made it to the opening screen when the door opened and a royal guard walked in. "Excuse me, Miss Willowbrook, Miss Goldenbraid, but the princess has requested your presence on the balcony immediately."

Em blinked at him. "Uhhm… okay. Did she say why?"

The guard replied with a head shake as he added, "To be honest, I don't even know why she's out there, with that pirate ship on its way here."

Piper's pointed ears perked up at the mention of a pirate ship. "What's the flag look like?"

The guard stared at her. "It's a pink skull on a black field. Why is everybody so interested in it?" But at this point he was talking to an empty room. Piper and Em had bolted as soon as the words "pink skull" had been spoken.

Piper was cartwheeling through the halls as Em sprinted beside her. They didn't waste any time talking and simply made for the balcony as fast as they could. When they burst through the doors, they found Arkayna holding up a magic spyglass. It was definitely the Pink Skulls coming in for a landing, but they hadn't really doubted that.

Em collapsed on the ground, wheezing; she had _definitely_ let herself get out of shape since starting her apprenticeship. She shot a dirty look at Piper, who was still fresh as a daisy, bouncing around the balcony, squealing.

Arkayna frowned as the ship drew closer. "Something isn't right… they're too high. What's Kitty doing?"

That question was answered a minute later. The ship suddenly banked sharply to the left and a voice yelled out, "Let's go, Choko!" A speck of blue detached itself from the railing and began falling toward them. As it came closer, it resolved itself into a teenage girl holding a rope, her face split into a grin so wide it threatened to tear her face in half. She let go of the rope about fifteen feet up, did an acrobatic flip in midair, and landed on her feet on the balcony, bending her knees slightly to absorb some of the impact.

Zarya straightened up and surveyed her three sisters with her signature smirk on her face.

"So… Did ya miss me?"


	2. Homecoming Part 2

**Okay, this is my first fic and I'm kinda figuring the website out as I go along. In case you haven't figured it out already, after the final battle, Zarya left with the Pink Skulls rather than become a princess (she is so NOT a dresses-and-tiaras kind of girl). This was originally only going to be one chapter, but then it got really long and I decided to split it up into two. I haven't decided yet whether or not to make it longer, but I do have a couple scenes that might fit the storyline nicely, so we'll see.**

 **Since I didn't get to it in the first chapter: I do not own Mysticons!**

Homecoming, Part 2

"So… Did ya miss me?"

The words had barely left Zarya's mouth before she was aggressively slam-tackled by an overenthusiastic dwarf and elf. Luckily, she'd been prepared for it and had managed to brace herself for Em and Piper's onslaught of affection. Arkayna had a bit more dignity, but Zarya hadn't had much time to process that before the princess had joined what could generously be called a group hug.

"I see you still like to make an entrance," Arkayna noted as she turned her head to avoid getting Piper's pigtail in her mouth.

"Look who's talking," retorted Zarya. "If anyone's got a flair for the dramatic, it's you."

"Nonononono! Don't fight, we're all here now for the first time in ages!" Piper begged them.

"I don't think they're fighting, Pipes. This is just how Zarya shows affection."

With her free hand, Zarya smacked Em lightly on top of the head for that comment. "Hey! I meant that as a compliment," Em complained.

The four girls broke apart from their embrace in time to hear a voice from above shout, "See you soon, Z-Star!"

Zarya turned and waved back up at the ship. "You know it, girl!"

She turned back to the others to find that they suddenly had disappointed expressions on their faces. "What? Did I do something weird?"

Arkayna was the first to speak. "Kitty said 'see you soon'… you're not staying?"

The confusion lifted from Zarya's face. "Course I'm staying! Kitty only said that 'cause the Pink Skulls are gonna stick around Drake City for a while, until I'm ready to leave. It's not like they have to worry about being arrested; you _did_ give them all royal pardons for helping the Mysticons."

Piper tackled her again. "Yay! Zarya's staying! I see a Mysticon slumber party in our future!"

"Please, anything but that," Zarya deadpanned.

"Oooh, ooh! I can't believe I didn't think of it sooner!" Em exclaimed. "I have a surprise for you guys! This timing is soooo perfect; I only just finished it and now we're all here!"

Zarya narrowed her eyes at the blonde. "I'm not really the biggest fan of surprises."

"You'll like this one, I _promise_. Seriously, come down to my rooms and check it out!" Em was bouncing up and down on her feet in a very Piper-esque fashion.

Arkayna shrugged. "Why not? I _looove_ surprises."

Piper shook her head. "Really, if it hadn't been for the spell, I'd never believe you two are related."

"Yeah, that makes two of us," Zarya agreed.

"Three," interjected Arkayna.

"Awww, look, they actually agree on something for once! But can we please go down to my rooms so I can show you guys your surprises?" Em was quite literally vibrating with excitement and impatience.

"Let's do it before the dwarf explodes. We can talk on the way there," Zarya suggested.

"Fine, but we're walking at a normal pace, as per _someone's_ fitness level." Piper stuck her tongue out at Em.

"Oh, so it's _my_ fault you have unlimited energy and I don't?" Em snarked back. "Hey, Arkayna, what're you doing?"

Arkayna looked up from her phone. "Glyphing Mom. I kinda walked out in the middle of Court Day. She won't be happy, but she'll understand when I tell her it's because of you guys."

Zarya was turned away from the others, so none of them saw the conflicted expression that crossed her face for a moment. Her relationship with the queen so far had been… awkward, to say the least. She knew she'd have to face it sometime… but not today. Today was about the four of them, nothing else.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The former Mysticons walked through the halls of the palace with Piper jabbering enthusiastically to Zarya about all the things that had happened since the final battle. It didn't take long for Zarya to start tuning out and taking note of her sisters' appearances. All three of them had altered their civilian outfits a bit to resemble what they'd worn as Mysticons. Zarya couldn't exactly judge them; she'd been out of Drake City for all of two days before dyeing the white streaks into her indigo hair. Commissioning the cloak to mimic her Ranger cape and replace her hoodie had taken longer, but she'd had it for four months now. It was dark blue, only a couple shades off from her hair, and Kitty had been so impressed with it that she'd immediately ordered one for herself in pink and black.

Arkayna appeared to have traded her bronze dragon-headed tiara for a golden replica of the one she'd worn as Dragon Mage. She had also added some green flame designs to her white cardigan, and now wore knee-length leggings in a darker shade of green than her dress, similar to the ones Piper wore.

Em seemed to have kept her lavender vest and boots, but had swapped her mint green tee and teal shorts for ones in a deep violet. Since she was no longer griffin wrangler, she'd ditched her aviator cap and goggles for a lavender bandana. With this, it was obvious she was also letting her side-cut grow out.

Piper had traded her old dress in pink, blue, and white for a gold one with white trim. She now wore knee-length leggings in teal, and her new boots matched her outfit—gold, with teal soles. She hadn't given up her little winged backpack, though.

Zarya followed them through the brightly lit hallways. Piper was still chattering excitedly. "…And then Mathis tripped and went flying into the side of the building! He got knocked out cold and we gave the lady her purse back. She gave us some gold as a reward, too."

Apparently the gang had had more trouble with Mathis than usual since she'd left. Zarya supposed she'd have to do something about that while she was here.

"Okay, girls, right in here! Sit wherever, and I'll be right back with your presents." Em was directing them into a well-lit sitting room with a couch and three cushy chairs. Two other doors led off from the main room; she disappeared through one of them.

Piper immediately jumped into one of the chairs, bouncing up and down. Arkayna selected another chair and sat down, crossing her ankles. Zarya plopped down on the couch and propped her boots on the table.

Em came back through the door lugging a large box. "Okay, so this was a project I worked on for the last two months. It took me a while to get them functioning properly, but I did it, and now they're finally ready!"

She placed the box on the table (forcing Zarya to quickly move her feet or else get them crushed) and opened it up. Nobody could quite tell what the objects inside were supposed to be. Em passed Piper three golden bracelets, Arkayna what looked like two gold sticks with green orbs attached to one end of each, and Zarya what appeared to be nothing more than a blue stick with grooves down its side, and then she just stood there, beaming.

The three girls examined their objects for a few seconds before Zarya felt the need for explanations. "All right, what gives? You promised I'd like it, but I don't even know what this is supposed to be."

Em was still grinning as she pointed to one end of the stick. "Press this button right here and find out!"

Still somewhat skeptical, Zarya did as Em instructed. As soon as she found the button, two arms sprang out from the center of the stick, giving it a new but very familiar shape. Zarya's eyes widened as she turned to stare at Em. "You didn't."

Arkayna was having trouble with her sticks as well. "Do mine do something cool like that?"

Em pointed at the orbs. "The smaller one has a notch in it. Fit the end of the other one into the notch, and then twist. And Piper, yours each have a button on the outside as well."

Both girls did as they were told. Arkayna's two sticks fit together as instructed, and the orbs began to glow green. Piper's bracelets grew to the size of dinner plates when she pressed the buttons. Both immediately turned disbelieving expressions onto Em.

"You… made us replicas of our Mysticon weapons?"

Em was still beaming as she answered Arkayna's question. "And I made one for me, too!"

It seemed the box wasn't quite empty, as Em went over to it and retrieved an asymmetrical sword in a bright violet color. She waved it around a few times as the others stared at her some more.

It was Zarya who once again broke the silence. "Don't I need some arrows to go with this? A bow by itself doesn't do much good."

Em shook her head and walked back over to point out the bow's features. "The arrows are created by magic when you draw the string. There's a number of other buttons on the grip; press this one for multiple arrows, this one for exploding arrows, and this one for arrows with tails." Turning to face the others, she went on, "That goes for you, too. I designed these to function exactly like our Mysticon weapons. They might look a little different, but I tried to keep them as similar as possible in their use." Turning back to Zarya, she added, "I'll admit, yours was the hardest because it has so many different uses. It activates when you draw it."

Silence fell again as all four girls went over their new weapons slowly and carefully. Arkayna was thrilled to find that a dragon head was carved below the top orb of her staff. She held it out to Em. "Was the dragon deliberate?"

Em held out her sword in response. The head of a unicorn had been cleverly worked into the hilt. Piper and Zarya fell to searching for their own power symbols on their weapons in excitement. Zarya found that the bowstring was actually held in the mouths of two carved wolves. A phoenix had been etched around each of the buttons that made Piper's chakrams grow in size. All of them were thrilled; Em had clearly spent a lot of time, energy, and probably gold to make these for them.

"When do we get to try them out?" Piper was asking Em, but Arkayna intervened.

"Not until tomorrow, in the training room. We are going to eat pizza and catch up with each other until then. Zarya, put that _down_."

Zarya released the bowstring with a disappointed expression, making the glowing blue arrow that had accumulated there dissipate. "Killjoy."

"Wait, I need to do something first." Em pulled out her phone and selected a contact. "Master Cloudwind? I'm requesting tomorrow off as well. Is that okay?" The answer must have been positive, because Em smiled and thanked him before disconnecting.

"Soooo… Sky Pies?"

Arkayna laughed at Piper's hopeful expression. "Yes, Piper, Sky Pies. Let's go!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The former Mysticons entered the floating pizza shop to find it empty of all customers except for a group of ten or so pirates. Seeing them, Zarya grinned and made her way over to where the leader was engaged in a pie-eating contest with a troll.

"Hey, Troll Dude, still haven't learned your lesson? I hope you've got enough to pay for all of our food too!"

Kitty looked over at her and spotted the others. "Hey, princess, bet it's been a boring few months without this girl around, am I right?"

Arkayna smiled at her. "You could say that… but we're paying for our own pizza, thanks."

Zarya tossed a card toward Mama Calamari. "Here, put it on this."

Arkayna eyed her. "I didn't know you had a credit card."

"I don't." The card came sailing back toward Zarya, who tucked it into a familiar-looking wallet. "Here ya go, princess, thanks for treating us."

Zarya _couldn't_ be implying what Arkayna thought she was… but to be sure, she patted her pockets. When she found nothing, she glared up at her twin sister. "You picked my pocket again? We talked about this!"

"Awww, you're no fun." Zarya tossed the wallet back at Arkayna.

Troll Dude was now passed out on the floor and the Pink Skulls were cheering Kitty.

"You know the drill… sky pies are on the lightweight!"

Arkayna cringed. "That is such a barbaric tradition. Mama Calamari, four pies with the works, please."

"Coming right up!"

The four took their seats at a table near the Pink Skulls. Zarya kept shooting glances over at them. It didn't take long for Kitty to wander over.

"I see you got your appetite back."

Zarya and Piper had already demolished a whole pie each, while Arkayna and Em had only eaten four slices between them.

"Oh, shut your pie-hole." Zarya punctuated this statement by flinging a slice of pizza at Kitty. The pirate captain wasn't quick enough to duck and ended up with cheese all over her face. She pulled the slice off and inspected it.

"I'm eating this."

Zarya made a knock-yourself-out gesture.

"So how's the reunion been?" Kitty asked them.

"Well, I guess we should start with the gifts Em made us…"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

For the first time in months, Zarya was awoken by the absolute stillness that came with being in a building instead of a skyship. Her hammock was simply hanging, not rocking back and forth by the breeze that always seemed to infiltrate the ship. The rooms she'd been given at the palace were also much larger than her onboard quarters, the same size as Arkayna's and the rooms given to Em and Piper. She looked over at the bow Em had made.

"All right… let's see what this thing can do."

Finding the training room wasn't difficult, once she'd found a guard to ask. The difficult part was looking around the room and realizing that it was not designed for experimenting with magical weapons. As much as she liked making stuff explode, it would probably be better to try it out on the balcony. Slipping through the hallways was ridiculously easy; she was almost tempted to steal something, just because she could. The street rats would appreciate it, but Arkayna definitely wouldn't… Fine, no stealing. It might actually be worth it if this bow did everything Em said it would.

Out on the balcony, she set up a few flowerpots to use as targets. Taking careful aim, she drew the string… and fired. The flowerpot shattered on impact, from nearly fifty feet.

"Oh, I am _so_ keeping this!"

Pressing the button for exploding arrows, she aimed toward the sky. The arrow traveled a good distance before detonating. _It looks like a firecracker… just a firecracker._ Em had either ignored the fact that Mysticon Ranger's arrows generally exploded into the Mysticon symbol, or she hadn't been able to work out how to incorporate that feature into the replica bow. _Meh, doesn't matter, I guess. Explosions are explosions._

"Having fun?"

Zarya turned around to find Arkayna standing there with her arms crossed and her eyebrows raised. She was holding her new staff too; Zarya guessed they were both here for the same reason. "This is _awesome!_ Em could totally make a living doing this."

"Well, that is the purpose of her apprenticeship," Arkayna pointed out.

"What's the purpose of an apprenticeship?" Piper asked, walking onto the balcony.

"To learn how to make a living doing something. I've told you before." Em yawned; she'd come in just behind Piper.

"Seriously? We all had the same idea?" Zarya glanced around at the others.

"Nah, I was on my way to the training room and heard the explosions. I ran into Em on the way here," Piper answered.

Em took out her phone and selected something. A few red orbs floated into view. "Here, we can practice on these. You know, so we _don't_ keep destroying flowerpots." This statement was accompanied with a glare directed at Zarya. "They turn white on contact, so you can tell when you hit the target."

The four girls each chose a target and began experimenting with their new toys. Em occasionally had to give some advice or correct something, but for the most part, the weapons worked just like the magical ones they'd been modeled after. There wasn't any conversation, and except for cheering when a shot connected, no talking at all, but they were still in perfect sync, even after months of separation and no practice. None of them even noticed that they had company.

Queen Goodfey had followed the sounds of laughter and explosions to the balcony and found the scene that was now before her. The four heroes of the realm might have lost their powers after the final battle, and the Dragon Disk was once again dormant, but they had defeated great evil and had gone back to their normal lives—or normal-ish, anyway, considering that they were celebrities now. The time spent as heroes was obvious, however; they were confident, intelligent leaders who could easily hold their own in a fight. She watched without drawing attention to herself as they played around with their weapons, keeping her eye on the blue-haired archer in particular. Maybe they would get to spend some time together before her more… independent daughter took to the skies again. For now, though, the four seemed happy to be together. She smiled as she decided to leave the teens to their fun.


	3. Chapter 3

**This will be the last chapter for this fic. I appreciate all the support and feedback I've gotten so far. It's been awesome, every time I log in and see a new review.**

Homecoming Part 3

Since Em had to return to her apprenticeship the next day, Piper insisted that they cram as much into one day as possible. Arkayna declared that the first order of business was breakfast, and they all went down to the kitchens to find some food. After making sandwiches (and a mess), they headed for an unused room across the hall. They giggled together as they ate off their laps.

"I think this might be the most fun we've ever had together," Em declared once they'd finished.

"We've had plenty of fun together before!" Piper objected. "What's different about this?"

"Well, for starters, nothing's trying to kill us," Em pointed out.

"That is a bonus," Zarya dryly agreed.

Arkayna sighed. "I wish it didn't have to end."

"Who says it does?" Piper asked.

"I have to go back to the shop," Em replied. "And Zarya's leaving again soon, too, right?"

All eyes turned to her.

"I wouldn't say I'm leaving soon, exactly. The Pink Skulls lined up a temporary job hauling cargo, and that's probably a three-week commitment, so we'll be staying at least that long," Zarya assured them. "I doubt we'll stay much longer, though. There's some things I wanna do while I'm back, so I'll be out and about in the city."

"May I come with you?"

The voice came from the doorway. All four of them turned to find the queen standing there, smiling hesitantly. None of them had heard her come in.

 _You knew you'd have to face this eventually,_ Zarya mentally scolded herself. _She's your mother and she barely knows you; it makes perfect sense that she'd want to spend time with you. If you hadn't been so set on not thinking about the possibility, you'd have a plan to deal with this!_

"Of _course_ you can," Arkayna interjected. "We'll all go together."

Zarya shot her twin sister a look that promised trouble. Arkayna smiled pleasantly back at her.

"I wasn't asking you, Arkayna." The queen kept her eyes on Zarya. "I want to spend some time with you before you leave."

Zarya considered her choices. She could either accept the company, or beat a hasty retreat and go join the Pink Skulls on their job. The second option was _extremely_ tempting… no. It might be easier, but she had come back to Drake City to spend time with her family, and the four people currently holding their breath waiting for her to answer _were_ her family. They hadn't argued when she'd flatly refused to change her last name. They hadn't tried to stop her from leaving with the Pink Skulls. They weren't going to stop her from living her own life.

"You can come if you want, but I have one condition." Zarya looked up and met her mother's eyes. "The Undercity can be a dangerous place, especially if anyone realizes who you are. I'll only take you with me if you agree to wear a disguise."

To her credit, the queen didn't hesitate. "I can do that."

"I can make you a disguise charm," Arkayna volunteered. When everyone else turned to stare at her, she shrugged. "What? Malvaron taught me. Apparently I have some magical talent. Dating a mage does have some perks, you know."

"Riiiight." Zarya rolled her eyes. "If you're gonna get all mushy on me, I'm leaving."

"How was that mushy?" Arkayna demanded.

Zarya just rolled her eyes again. "Just make the charm out of something cheap, all right? Something no self-respecting street rat would bother stealing."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Arkayna created the disguise charm easily, but Zarya was glad to see that someone—presumably Piper—had informed the queen that a charm by itself wasn't a guarantee of safety. The queen had exchanged her green tunic and leggings for a t-shirt and jeans, removed all of her jewelry, and pulled her long hair into a ponytail. Her outfit was still green, the color of the royal family, and Zarya wondered if she should suggest a different color. Although plenty of other people wore green as well… All right, good enough.

Zarya handed over the charm, and as the queen fastened it around her neck, she seemed to… fade. Her turquoise eyes—the only feature the two of them shared—became a light blue-gray, and her reddish-brown hair turned a rather nondescript shade of brown. _Perfect. She's completely unrecognizable._

As threatened, Arkayna, Em, and Piper joined them. Since the queen was in disguise, the only one who would likely warrant a second glance was Arkayna. Piper and Em both looked perfectly normal for Undercity denizens. Zarya did as well, but she kept her hood up so no one could see her face. Normally, she wouldn't have bothered, but it was pretty much common knowledge that she'd been a Mysticon by now, and she didn't want to get mobbed.

"Lead the way, Z!" Piper cheerfully ordered.

Zarya did as she was told. This was her home turf, and she thrived on the action of the city. She quickly and efficiently made her way to a familiar dead-end alleyway, where a stack of crates sat against the wall. The stack didn't look like much, but Zarya knew what it hid. She approached and gave a series of light taps.

A scraping sound came from the other side, and soon a girl who couldn't have been more than nine stuck her face around a corner. Her eyes narrowed as she focused on Zarya. "Who're you and wha'd'ya want from us?"

"Who is it, Skyla?" a voice called from inside.

The girl—Skyla, apparently—turned around and yelled back inside. "Some girl, but I dunno who. She knows the secret knock."

"I told you, Sky, you gotta get that right off. And who else knows the secret knock?" A pink-haired boy of about twelve poked his head around the corner, not recognizing Zarya. "We're all accounted for; who…"

Zarya pushed her hood back. "Neeko, is that any way to greet an old friend?"

Neeko's eyes widened. "Zarya! You… I thought… you left Drake City?"

"You know why I left, Neeko. We've all been doing our own version of hiding the last few months." Zarya smiled at him. "But I couldn't let you have all the fun. Come on out, let's chat."

Once outside the hideout, Neeko—and Skyla, who'd followed him—settled against the wall. "What did you mean when you said you've all been hiding?"

Zarya nodded out toward the end of the alley, where her sisters and mother were watching and listening. "We wanted normal lives, not the craziness that comes with being famous. Just because I'm the only one who left doesn't mean the others haven't been avoiding the spotlight, too. Arkayna's been throwing herself into her lessons and not leaving the palace much. Em's an apprentice smith working really long days. And Piper lives down here. You know as well as I do that nobody ever gives street rats a second glance."

Neeko took a look over at the small group waiting for them. He frowned. "I've seen the princess and the blonde one with you guys before, but who's the other one?"

Zarya kept her cool, glad she'd prepared for that question. "Her name's Lia, she works at the palace and wanted to see what all the hype's about." As she'd hoped, Neeko accepted that explanation, but she decided to change the subject anyway, and brought out the small sack she'd been holding. "Here, I brought you guys some food. There's some gold in there, too, so you can buy some stuff instead of stealing."

Neeko looked inside. "Awesome! Gimme a minute, I'll go hide this."

He disappeared back inside the hideout. Zarya followed him with her eyes, wondering since when they'd bothered to hide anything their supplies right away, but then noticed Skyla staring at her. She frowned. "What?"

"Are you really Zarya Moonwolf? The one who looks out for the street kids, the one everyone else is always talking about?"

"That's me."

Skyla looked at her shoes. "You're a legend down here. Are you really a Mysticon?"

Zarya smiled at the little girl. "I used to be Mysticon Ranger. But we don't have powers anymore."

Neeko had returned without them noticing. "What, you didn't believe me?"

Skyla shrugged. Zarya weighed her options for a moment, then decided, as usual, to go with her instincts. "I want you two to spread the word. If any street rat needs anything, tell them to go to the palace and ask for an audience with the princess. Tell her my name, and she'll help you." She considered. "Or, if you don't like the idea of going near the palace, go to—" she fished out the scrap of paper where she'd written down the location of the shop where Em spent most of her time these days, "—this address, and ask to see Emerald. Same deal: say my name, and she'll help you out."

"Why?" Skyla wanted to know.

"Because they're my sisters, the other Mysticons. Arkayna was the Dragon Mage, our leader. Em was Mysticon Knight. And Mysticon Striker? Well, she's already looking out for you." Zarya searched their faces for minute to make sure they understood. "Piper won't let anything happen to you guys. Now, why were you so quick to hide the loot I brought you?"

Neeko sighed. "Mathis will steal it from us if we don't. He does it to all the street kids lately. It's already stolen, mostly, so it's not like we can report him for it."

"Couldn't you just steal it back?"

"How? He's twice the size of most of us." Neeko looked down. "You're the only one who ever stood up to him, Zarya. He's been pulling this stunt ever since you left."

Zarya stood up so fast her cape flew out behind her. "Where does Mathis usually hang out these days? Seems like I need to teach him a lesson…"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The Snorg Shack wasn't very busy. Schnechtacus was shooing off some rogue foz, but other than that, it was quiet—or, well, as quiet as it ever got in the Undercity. Zarya hid behind a corner, along with Arkayna, Em, Piper, and Queen Goodfey. She pulled her hood back up and held her new bow at the ready.

"What exactly are we doing here?" the queen wanted to know.

Arkayna sighed. "We're staking out the Snorg Shack, so that when Mathis shows up to steal some Snorg balls, Zarya's gonna rough him up a little."

"A little?" Zarya snorted. "Understatement of the year."

It seemed like the queen was going to say something else, but before she could, Piper shushed them all. "Look, here he comes!"

"Excellent." Zarya carefully aimed a glowing energy arrow toward the large teen. One shot, and he was pinned to the side of a wall, cursing. She walked up him, hood down, bow in hand. "Hello again, loser. I hear you've been messing with some friends of mine. It looks like I'll have to remind you why that's a bad idea."

Mathis sneered at her—an impressive display, considering he was currently trying to free his sleeve from the arrow without ripping it. "Well, look who's back. Hidin' around corners like a coward? Too scared to fight me face to face without your Mysticon powers?"

Zarya pitched her voice so it would carry. "Huh. That's funny, seeing as I never needed Mysticon powers to kick your butt before. Let's see… I could leave you there. You'll be the laughingstock of the Undercity in two hours." She turned and started walking away, hoping…

"Hey!" the lunkhead yelled after her. "I knew you were too scared to fight me!"

Zarya didn't let the evil grin she was feeling show. _Just what I wanted._ She turned around. "You wanna fight me, you moron? Fine. Let's go, right here." She _willed_ the arrow pinning him to the wall to dissolve—and to her surprise, it did. _Wow, this really_ _ **is**_ _just like my Ranger bow!_ She couldn't exactly carry it during the fight, though, so she went over and handed it to Arkayna, noting as she did the number of street rats that had gathered to watch the fight. _Looks like Neeko and Skyla came through…_

The two started circling each other. Mathis threw the first punch, which Zarya dodged easily. "Hey, getting faster! I think that one actually moved at the speed of your average glacier!" she taunted him.

"Oh, shut it, egghead!" Mathis jeered back at her. He threw another punch and followed it up with an elbow aimed at her nose. She dodged both. _All right, I don't just wanna kick his butt; I wanna totally_ _ **humiliate**_ _this idiot!_ She ducked another swing and used the extra second she'd gained to take stock of her surroundings. At this point, he should be perfectly situated for maximum humiliation right about…

Zarya ran up the wall and flipped down on his other side. "I'm getting bored!" she heckled him. _Come on, take the bait_.

He did.

 _Perfect._

Mathis threw another punch. It was as easy for her to dodge as all the others had been.

… _now._

She quickly ducked around the bigger teen and carefully placed her boot on his rear end. Narrowing her eyes, she _shoved_ with all her strength. The loser went flying… straight into the open mouth of the Chomp-Dumpster. It snapped its mouth shut and a gurgling noise could be heard, then the monster spat him back out, covered in slimy goo. The crowd of watching street kids cheered at seeing the idiot taken down so easily by a girl half his size.

Zarya turned to the audience and raised her hands triumphantly. "Any more trash that needs to be taken out?"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The mood on the walk back to the palace was nothing short of victorious. Schnectacus had given them all free wraith shakes to thank them for running off Mathis (who never paid for his food). They all joked and chattered about silly things. Piper recounted Arkayna's first experience with Snorg balls (while Arkayna covered her face in embarrassment). Em told them all about her apprenticeship, what it was like working with such a renowned master, and a little about the other apprentice and the employees she worked with. Zarya told a funny story about Kitty trying to chase off some Funganoids that had stowed away on the ship while they'd been anchored at a town up north.

"…And let's just say it'll be a _long_ time before Kitty orders mushrooms on her pizza again," Zarya was saying.

By this time, they were back in the palace. Piper suddenly stopped. "Oooh, Arkayna, we forgot all about the, the you-know-what?"

Arkayna's eyes widened. "You're right! It's up in my rooms; I'll go get it!"

She sped off down the hallway in the direction of her rooms.

"Do I ever get to meet your pirate friends?" Queen Goodfey asked Zarya. "I promise I won't try to arrest them."

She didn't get the chance to answer. Gawayne came around the corner and stopped short when he noticed her. "Ugh, you're back? I thought you left with those weird pirate people."

"Gawayne!" Queen Goodfey scolded him. "Be nice to your stepsister."

Zarya had a different reaction: laughing in his stupid face. "I've already knocked one loser into a dumpster today; you wanna be next?"

Surprisingly, Gawayne took a look at her expression and did the intelligent thing for once: running away.

"That wasn't very nice," the queen reproved her.

Zarya snorted. "If Arkayna told you I was _nice_ , she was lying through her teeth."

Queen Goodfey covered her mouth with her hand before anyone could see her smiling. It had been a long time since anyone had had the nerve to use a tone like that with her, and she found it refreshing.

Arkayna came running back toward them. She handed a small box to Zarya. "Here. You don't have to wear it; I just wanted you to have it in case you change your mind one day… She trailed off as Zarya opened the package and stared at the contents, then looked up, her expression unreadable.

"I'm glad you don't expect me to wear it, because it's not happening. I'll go put this away in my rooms."

Zarya quickly walked away from the others, not letting them see her face. Once she got to her rooms and closed the door behind her, she opened the box again and pulled out the thin silver tiara that was inside. It was far less elaborate than anything Arkayna owned, and had arrow designs etched into the metal. If she had to guess, she'd say that this had been Arkayna's idea, but that Piper had come up with the design, and Em had used the forge at the shop to make it. This was clearly something that had been designed for her alone, and it would look absolutely beautiful against her blue hair.

After a moment, Zarya carefully placed the circlet into her bag. Maybe it was silly to want to keep this, but she owned so few _things_ … what could it hurt? Apart from the photos that lined her walls (both here and on the ship), her only possessions were the clothes on her back and the bow in her hand. The day that she would actually wear it was far in the future (if ever), but it would serve as a reminder of home while she was adventuring.

 _Snap out of it. You've got plenty to do in the next few weeks,_ Zarya quickly scolded herself. She smiled; yes, there was certainly a lot she had to do while she was here. The food she'd brought the street rats wouldn't last forever, and of course she had to give Tazma's snow globe an obligatory shake at some point (because she couldn't help being a little bit petty). And another thing, one she hadn't mentioned to anyone else: Proxima Starfall had locked herself in her rooms at the Astromancer Palace after the final battle and refused to leave, but she turned sixteen next week. Zarya wasn't going to let the lonely, bitter girl spend her starday alone if she had anything to say about it…

 **As I said earlier, Homecoming is over now, but if you liked it, check out Mysticon Short Stories if you haven't already! The first two chapters are up already, and more will follow soon!**

 **Bookwyrm321 out!**


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